HRC Blog

House bill introduced in Pennsylvania to protect LGBT residents from discrimination

March 4, 2009

Equality Advocates Pennsylvania announced this morning via press release that State Rep. Dan Frankel (D-Allegheny County) has introduced legislation (House Bill 300) to add “sexual orientation” and “gender identity or expression” to the state's anti-discrimination laws. Current Pennsylvania law provides basic legal protection against discrimination on the bases of race, color, religion, ancestry, age, national origin, handicap or disability, education and the use of a guide dog. “This legislation is critical to thousands of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Pennsylvanians who are trying to work and have a roof over their heads, and it enjoys substantial support from Pennsylvanians from every corner of the Commonwealth,” said Jake Kaskey, policy and outreach coordinator of Equality Advocates Pennsylvania. “At a time when more and more people across the state find themselves unemployed, we need to make sure every Pennsylvanian who wants to work has a fair chance at work,” Kaskey added. “It’s time for us in the legislature to take a stand against this kind of discrimination,” Frankel said. “The passage of House Bill 300 would bring our state in line with several of our neighbors who already offer these basic protections to their citizens, and it would establish Pennsylvania as a just , fair and competitive place to live and work.” The bill is expected to go to the House State Government Committee, where it has been assigned in the past. In the last legislative session, House State Government Committee Chairperson Babette Josephs (D-Philadelphia) held public committee hearings on similar legislation in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Erie.